Fund crisis hits Jwalamukhi collegeJWALAMUKHI, Oct 21 — Jwalamukhi Degree College run by the Jwalamukhi Shiksha is in for a trouble as the temple trust has told the management to generate its own resources. The move has rendered uncertainty for the future of students and staff.

Rs 6.20 crore bypass
under considerationBILASPUR, Oct 21 — A Rs 6.20 crore bypass project for reducing traffic on the national highway passing right through New Bilaspur township here is under consideration of Centre and its approval is expected soon.

Show results or be shifted: CMHAMIRPUR, Oct 21 — Teachers showing poor results will be shifted from urban schools to interior areas, Prof Prem Kumar Dhumal, Chief Minister, said while addressing a largely attended public meeting at the local school complex last evening.

Bus operators: hike
fares by Nov 5SHIMLA, Oct 21 — The Himachal Pradesh private Bus Operators Association has threatened to take private buses off the road if the government fails to increase bus fares by November 5.

Leopard attacks
studentHAMIRPUR, Oct 21 — Rakesh Kumar a student of Class XI, was injured when a leopard pounced on him near Bumana village in the district this morning.

Association: remove
encroachmentsCHAMBA, Oct 21 — The Chamba Welfare Association has urged the district administration to launch an anti-encroachment drive in the Chowgan bazar and roads on both sides of Chowgan No. 1, 2, 3 and 4 so that people can walk easily in the market.

Plan on tourist
site soonJWALAMUKHI, Oct 21 — The Excise and Sports Minister, Mr Parveen Sharma, said here today that the plan to develop Pong Dam and an artificial lake in Kangra district as a focal point from the tourism point of view would be formulated in three months.

Website on
Jwalaji temple launchedJWALAMUKHI, Oct 21 — A website on the Jwalaji temple in Kangra district has been launched. Major highlights of the temple, folklore related to the goddess, Mata Jwalaji, a “virtual darshan” of the goddess and information about the importance of the place as a tourist spot are all available on the site.

HP remembers
police martyrsSHIMLA, Oct 21 — Tributes were paid to 1251 policemen who laid down their lives while performing their duty at the state level commemoration day function here today.

4 scale Shitidhar peakMANALI, Oct 21 — Two mountaineering instructors, Mr Kanwar Singh Verma and Mr Prem Sharma, along with four trainees climbed Shitidhar peak at an altitude of 17,253 feet in Pir Panjal range on Friday on October 20 last. In an official press note issued here Col H.S. Chauhan, Director of the Directorate of Mountaineering and Allied Sports Manali, informed that the trainees were two from Jammu and Kashmir one from Haryana and one from Belgium.

School’s annual
functionKUMARHATTI, Oct 21 — The Governor of Himachal Pradesh, Mr Vishnu Kant Shastri has urged the students to work hard. He was speaking at the third annual function in Pine Grove School, Subathu, about 20 km from here today.

BJP to hold
conferences from Oct 28SHIMLA, Oct 21 — The state unit of the BJP has decided to organise political conferences in each Assembly constituency from October 28 to November 6 with a view to gearing up the party machinery for the ensuing elections to urban municipal bodies and Panchayati Raj institutions.

JWALAMUKHI, Oct 21 — Jwalamukhi Degree College run by the Jwalamukhi Shiksha is in for a trouble as the temple trust has told the management to generate its own resources. The move has rendered uncertainty for the future of students and staff.

The establishment of a degree college was one of the main demands of the local MLA, who had won as an independent candidate and whose support was vital to the formation of the present BJP-HVC combine government.

The move, sources say, is an outcome of the tug of war between the IPH Minister, Mr Ramesh Choudhary, and the defeated BJP candidate Rana Kashmir Singh who is now chairman of the Himachal Pradesh Temple Board. As Mr Choudhary and Mr Rana belong to the Shanta and Dhumal factions respectively, the move has acquired political overtones.

The Deputy Commissioner, Mr R.C. Kapil, chairman of the trust and the samiti, confirmed that the Shiksha Samiti had been told to generate its own resources to meet the expenditure of the college.

The college which is not receiving any grant-in-aid from the state government or the UGC for want of required infrastructure may face hard times as it does not offer any professional course and is unable to generate enough money to meet the expenses. The Principal of the college, Mr Prem Kumar said the management had flashed a request for liberal donation from NRIs and social bodies on the web site.

Trying to justify the move, the trust officials claim that apart from the degree college it also ran a Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya in the temple, besides other development activities.

Mr Choudhary’s supporters are of the opinion that the act was a move to settle political scores and that the trust could easily spare the requisite amount. It had contributed Rs 20 lakh in one year, whereas the income of the trust in the previous year was to the tune of Rs 1.75 crore.

However, the temple officer of the shrine said all development work had come to a standstill due to paucity of funds, adding that out of an income of Rs 1.75 crore last year, Rs 1.216 crore had been spent on various projects.

BILASPUR, Oct 21 — A Rs 6.20 crore bypass project for reducing traffic on the national highway passing right through New Bilaspur township here is under consideration of Centre and its approval is expected soon. This was announced by Health and Family Welfare Minister Jagatprakash Nadda while presiding over five-hour-long district Grievances Committee meeting of district officers and non-officials here today. The Health Minister also said that a proposal for meeting demand of construction of Berry-Daroian to Khariyan bridge areas over Gobind-Sagar here with town was under consideration of state government and this project is expected to be cleared at the earliest so that aspiration of lakhs of Bhakra Dam oustees are met.

Mr Nadda urged district officers to desist from “British Raj mentality” of pre-independence days and adopt constructive attitude.

The Health Minister, apart from ordering immediate relief to various sections of people at different areas of district by solving two dozen problems in this meeting also ordered that petrol pump located at main bus stand here should be shifted to HRTC work shop, roads of Bilaspur town be repaired, rain shelter at Luhanu Ghat be reconstructed, vehicular traffic at main market be controlled and police shed from Champa park be removed and no future encroachments should be allowed at all in the town here. The Health Minister also said that Rs 20 lakh would be spent soon on construction of pedestrian path on national highway from main bus stand to post office chowk.

HAMIRPUR, Oct 21 — Teachers showing poor results will be shifted from urban schools to interior areas, Prof Prem Kumar Dhumal, Chief Minister, said while addressing a largely attended public meeting at the local school complex last evening.

He stressed the need for imparting good education to students so that they became model citizens.

Earlier, the Chief Minister dedicated to the people a Rs 2.75 crore building, one of the finest buildings constructed as an educational institution in the state.

He said the government was spending Rs 715 crore for the promotion of education in the state during the fiscal year. This, he said, was more than double the funds spent by the previous government on education.

The Chief Minister said the government would introduce computer education in all 125 senior secondary schools of the state from the next academic session. Computer education was a must to prepare the future generation to meet new challenges. The government would also introduce computer education in high schools in a phased manner.

Prof Dhumal announced a grant of Rs 2 crore for the town’s drinking water scheme. A sum of Rs 11 crore would be spent for the augmentation of this scheme, the Chief Minister said.

He said the Central Government had released a sum of Rs 50 crore for four vital projects in the state, including a modern bus stand at Hamirpur and sewerage schemes at Hamirpur, Jwalamukhi and Dharamsala.

The Chief Minister announced a market near the local bus stand. Stall owners would be rehabilitated.

The Chief Minister also inaugurated the science block of the local government Postgraduate College constructed at a cost of Rs 1.05 crore. He said the endeavour of the state government was to provide basic facilities in colleges.

He also ordered installation of a handpump inside the college complex.

SHIMLA, Oct 21 — The Himachal Pradesh private Bus Operators Association has threatened to take private buses off the road if the government fails to increase bus fares by November 5.

The association, which met here today, expressed resentment over the inordinate delay in revising the bus fares in the wake of the recent hike in the prices of petrol and diesel. The increase in the prices had increased the cost operations by Rs 300 to Rs 600 per bus a day resulting in heavy losses to the bus operators, it said.

Mr Dev Raj, president of the association, expressed concern over the failure of the administration to prevent the misuse of private vehicles for public carriage which directly affected the transporters who were paying heavy taxes to the government.

He urged the government to consult the association before taking a decision on bus-fare hike.

HAMIRPUR, Oct 21 — Rakesh Kumar a student of Class XI, was injured when a leopard pounced on him near Bumana village in the district this morning.

He has been admitted to a hospital here with bruises on his left arm. Mr Ajit Lal Sharma, Chief Conservator of Forests, Wildlife, said the boy was out of danger. He said the department had decided to set up a cage in the area to catch the leopard.

The incident has sent shock waves among residents of the area with 10-odd persons already having been injured in such incidents in the past one month.

CHAMBA, Oct 21 — The Chamba Welfare Association has urged the district administration to launch an anti-encroachment drive in the Chowgan bazar and roads on both sides of Chowgan No. 1, 2, 3 and 4 so that people can walk easily in the market.

In a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner of Chamba, Mr T.D. Negi, submitted by the association president, Mr Lajpat Singh Jandrotia, it was demanded that the drive would reduce chances of accidents and eve-teasing in the market.

The association requested the administration to ask the shopkeepers and vendors to remain within their limits and not put their merchandise outside their shops and stalls on roads.

The association also demanded that rehris and kiosks should not be allowed to come up on the main roads.

The association lauded the steps taken recently by the district administration for clearing the main Chowgan road from the Circuit House to the city police station by shifting taxis, rehris and kiosks.

JWALAMUKHI, Oct 21 — The Excise and Sports Minister, Mr Parveen Sharma, said here today that the plan to develop Pong Dam and an artificial lake in Kangra district as a focal point from the tourism point of view would be formulated in three months.

Talking to mediapersons here, he said a consultant of the World Tourism Organisation was expected to submit a blueprint soon after meeting the departments concerned. The work would be undertaken immediately afterwards as the state government had already earmarked enough funds for the plan.

He said the master plan would be eco-friendly and all parts of the district connected with roads so that tourists visiting the place could visit all spots in nearby areas.

JWALAMUKHI, Oct 21 — A website on the Jwalaji temple in Kangra district has been launched. Major highlights of the temple, folklore related to the goddess, Mata Jwalaji, a “virtual darshan” of the goddess and information about the importance of the place as a tourist spot are all available on the site.

According to the Deputy Commissioner, Kangra, Mr R.C. Kapil, who is also the in charge of the temple, the most significant aspect of the website is the facility of sending offerings to the temple through e-mail. The address of the website is
www.matajawalaji.org.

SHIMLA, Oct 21 — Tributes were paid to 1251 policemen who laid down their lives while performing their duty at the state level commemoration day function here today.

Mr A.K. Puri, the Director General of Police, took the salute at the ‘smriti’ parade. Eight Himachalis were among the martyrs of the year. Wreaths were laid at the martyrs memorial on behalf of the Governor and the Chief Minister.

The day is observed as Police Commemoration Day every year in the memory of the 10 jawans of the CRPF who laid down their lives at Hot Springs in Ladakh in 1959 while fighting an unequal battle with heavily armed Chinese troops who had violated the Indian borders.

Police Commemoration Day was observed at a function held at the police lines in Mandi. Mr Somesh Goyal, DIG, Central Range, paid tributes to the police martyrs.

MANALI, Oct 21 — Two mountaineering instructors, Mr Kanwar Singh Verma and Mr Prem Sharma, along with four trainees climbed Shitidhar peak at an altitude of 17,253 feet in Pir Panjal range on Friday on October 20 last. In an official press note issued here Col H.S. Chauhan, Director of the Directorate of Mountaineering and Allied Sports Manali, informed that the trainees were two from Jammu and Kashmir one from Haryana and one from Belgium. He said that the climbers of the peak gained height of 6,453 feet in just one day as the base camp from where they started was at a height of 10,800 feet. The director added that it was really a great achievement for these climbers who were just attending a beginners’ course in mountaineering.

Col H.S. Chauhan, Director of the Directorate of Mountaineering and Allied Sports Manali in an official release issued here said that 251st basic Mountaineering course was conducted by the Directorate of Mountaineering and Allied Sports Manali from October 1, 2000 to 26-10-2000. He further revealed that there were 29 boys attending the course from the states of U.P., Bihar, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir including one trainee each from Singapore and Belgium. He added that basic Mountaineering course was the first course in the Mountaineering career of a trainee.

KUMARHATTI, Oct 21 — The Governor of Himachal Pradesh, Mr Vishnu Kant Shastri has urged the students to work hard. He was speaking at the third annual function in Pine Grove School, Subathu, about 20 km from here today.

The cultural programme opened with an Indian musical orchestra. The annual school report was read by Pallak Sharma and Lakshay Puniani. The achievement of the students in class X exams was highlighted in the report.

SHIMLA, Oct 21 — The state unit of the BJP has decided to organise political conferences in each Assembly constituency from October 28 to November 6 with a view to gearing up the party machinery for the ensuing elections to urban municipal bodies and Panchayati Raj institutions.

According to Mr Ganesh Dut, the party spokesperson, workers will be educated about the achievements of the Dhumal government which will be the main plank in the election. The party’s strategy for the poll will also be finalised during the conferences and the workers will be asked to ensure the election of persons with a clean image.

He said a minister and an office-bearer of the party would be present at each conference.